Container for tissue kerchiefs



Dec. 23, 1941. F. J, NATWICK ET AL CONTAINER FOR TISSUE KERCHIEFS' FiledMay 27; 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Y & 0 KNR Y Kim m. w m mww w NA] .A A M WKY B Dec. 23, 1941.

F. J. NATWICK ETAL CONTAINER FOR TISSUE KERCHIEFS 2 Shees-Sheet 2 FiledMay 27, 1940 .FRA/VKJ/V/ITW/CK, R0) A. SANBOR/V,

, INVENTORS. WM

Patented Dec. 23, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,267,305 CONTAINER.FOR TISSUE KERCHIEFS Frank J. Natwick, Huntington Park, andRoy A.Sanborn, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application May 27, 1940, Serial No. 337,456

8 Claims.

Our invention relates to a service container for tissue kerchiefs of thetype now extensively employed as substitutes for cloth handkerchiefs orsmall towels and the like for human application.

Tissue kerchiefs of the type for which this con tainer is intended arerapidly becoming anaccepted part of the equipment of the dressing tableof both the boudoir and the beauty parlor, owing to the fact that theyprovide discardable sheets of soft texture which may be used to removecold cream and for many other purposes for which handkerchiefs and smallcloths are employed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a container ofattractive appearance in which a stack of tissue kerchiefs, such asKleenex, may be placed from the carton in which such kerchiefs arepurchased, and which container will hold the kerchiefs in accessiblestate.

It is an object of the invention to provide a container for foldedtissue kerchiefs having a top wall with an opening therein through whichthe kerchiefs may be singly removed, this opening being so formed thatthe kerchief on the top of the stack may be readily engaged by thefingers and easily removed from the container.

A further object of the invention is to provide a container of thecharacter set forth in the preceding paragraph having means foryieldably lifting the stack of kerchiefs therein, so that the topkerchief of the stack will be held close to or in engagement with thelower face of the top wall of the container. A feature of the inventionis that the stack is supported in a horizontal plane and is yieldabledownwardly in response to pressure applied thereto, thereby making itpossible for the user to readily pass one or more fingers under the topfold of the upper kerchief, to readily grasp the kerchief so that it maybe removed from the container without tearing the same and without unduewrinkling.

A further object of the invention is to provide for the container anovel form of yieldable support for the stack of tissue kerchiefs andalso to provide a simple, readily detachable and replaceable springelement to yieldably support a plate on which a stack of tissue rests,this spring being of such character that it will urge the supportingplate from a position at the bottom of the container substantially intoengagement at the top wall of the container when the last sheet oftissue of the stack is removed.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple spring memberso formed that the ends thereof will engage end portions of thesupportmg plate, and to provide in conjunction with this spring membermeans for connecting the central portion thereof to the container, suchconnecting means being so formed that it will permit ready removal ofthe spring when it is desired to remove the supporting plate to enablerefilling of the container with a new stack of tissue kerchiefs.

Further objects and advantages will be brought out in the following partof the specification.

Referring to the drawings which are for illus trative purposes only:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of myinvention.

Fi 2 is a cross section taken on a plane indicated by the line 22 ofFig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section taken on a longitudinal plane through the container.

Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the container with the supporting plateand the spring in place therein.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken as indicated by the line 55of Fig. 3.

In a preferred embodiment of my invention I provide a container l0having a top wall ll, side walls l2 and end walls I3, preferably joinedby rounded corners l4. Near the ends of each side wall l2 metal tongues[5 are bent inward to support rubber knobs 16 serving as feet for thecontainer so that it may rest upon a polished surface without marringthe same. It will be noted that the tongues or feet elements l5 arespaced a short distance from the end wall l3 of the container.

The container ID has an opening 11 in thev eral'projections 22 at theends of the plate 20,'

which engage the side walls 12 so as to serve as guides for the verticalmovement of the supporting plate 20 within the container It]. It will benoted that the projections 22 lie between the tongues I5 andthe endwalls l3 of the container.

To urge the supporting plate 20 upward from g the lower position thereofindicated by dotted lines 20a in Fig. 3, I provide a spring member 23which, as shown in Fig. 4 is approximately of rectangular form. Thisspring member 23 is preferably bent from a piece of spring wire into theform of a closed loop with the ends of the wire joined by means of ametal connector 24. The spring 23 has a pair of end portions 25 and sideportions 26. The end portions 25 are shorter than the width dimension ofthe container l6 and preferably slightly longer than the widthdimensions w of the supporting plate 20. side portions 26 of the spring23 are bowed outwardly and the central part of each side portion 26 iscoiled so as to form a short helical spring 21 to fit over a projectionor pin 28 which extends inward from the central lower portion of a sidewall l2 of the container It].

The side portions 26 of the spring 23 are bowed to such an extent thatin order to place the coils 21 over the pins 28 it is necessary tospring the centers of the side portions 26 inward. Accordingly, thecoils 21 are held over the pins 28 by outward pressure exerted by theside portions 26 and to remove the spring 23 from the position in whichit is shown in Fig. 4 it .is merely necessary to spring the sideportions 26 inward from the positions in which they are shown. Thespring 23 consists of two U-shaped portions 30 each including an endportion 25 and a pair of legs which consist of the adjacent halves ofthe side portions 26, connected by the coils 21. These portions 30 ofthe spring 23 slope upward from the coils 21 as shown in Fig. 3 so thatthe end portions 25 thereof bear against the end portions of thesupporting plate 20. The spring 23 is so formed that it will raise thesupporting plate 20 into or nearly into engagement with the upper wallII of the container 19 when the stack I8 of tissue is removed.

The notches 2| in the edges of the supporting plate 29 provide spacesbetween the plate 26 and the side walls [2 of the container in which theside portions 26 of the spring 23 may rest as shown in 26a when thesupporting plate 29 is in its lowermost position as indicated at 20a,and at which time the interior of the container is substantially filledby a stack of tissue of from 200 to 250 sheets. It will be noted thatthe side portions 26 of the spring 23 converge from the coils 21 to theend portions 25 so that they lie inside the tongues I and will not catchon them as the ends of the spring 23 are moved downwardly or when thespring 23 is being removed from or placed in the container.

As further shown in Figs 1 and 2 the top wall I! is provided with anopening 35 which extends along the longitudinal center line of the topII. This opening has rounded ends 36 and longitudinal edges 31 whichdiverge from the ends 36 toward the center of the top wall II to providea central enlargement 38 through which the fingers may be inserted tograsp the edge 39 of the top folded tissue kerchief l9. The container isespecially suited for use with tissue folded so that the edges 39 and39a lie relatively close together and extend longitudinally of theopening 35. A feature of the invention resides in the provision of themeans for resiliently supporting the stack l8 of tissue so that thisstack l8 may be forced downward with slight pressure by the fingers Allof a hand, as such fingers are passed under the edge 39 of the toptissue 19, and also if desired a short distance under an edge 31 of thetop wall H; thereby making it possible to 4 easily obtain grip on asufiicient area of the tissue to avoid possibility of tearing the sameas a pull is applied in upward direction to draw the tissue through theopening 35. When the stack l 8 is depressed and the fingers 40 arepassed The under the edge 39 of the sheet, the thumb may be brought intoengagement with the exposed upper surface of the sheet substantially inthe manner shown.

We have shown a simple and practical form of the invention, but it willbe recognized that the invention should not be limited to the details ofconstruction shown but should be accorded full scope of the appendedclaims.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of a containerhaving a top wall with side and end walls depending therefrom and anopen bottom, said top wall having a slot-like opening therein; asupporting plate movable into said container through said open bottom,on which a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; and spring meansinsertable into said container after said supporting plate, foryieldably urging said supporting plate upward toward said top wall ofsaid container, whereby the top kerchief of said stack will be normallyheld against said top wall but may be displaced downward away from saidopening to facilitate grasping of said top kerchief through saidopening.

2. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of: a containerhaving a top wall with side and end walls depending therefrom and anopen bottom, said top wall having a slot-like opening therein; asupporting plate movable into said container through said open bottom,on which a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; and a spring insertableinto said container below said supporting plate through said openbottom, said spring having means whereby the central portion thereof isconnected to the side walls of said container and having free endsengaging the end portions of said supporting plate to yieldably urgesaid supporting plate upward toward said top wall of said container,whereby the top kerchief of said stack will be held yieldably againstsaid top wall.

3. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of: a containerhaving a top wall with side and end walls depending therefrom and anopen bottom, saidtop wall having. a slot-like opening therein; asupporting plate movable through said open bottom into said container onwhich a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; and spring meansinsertable through said open bottom into the lower part of saidcontainer, said spring means and said side walls of said containerhaving detachable means of interengagement functioning in response tolateral expansion of said spring means to hold said spring meansoperatively in said container, said spring means having end portions toyieldably urge said supporting plate upward toward said top wall of saidcontainer, whereby the top kerchief of said stack will be yieldably heldin a position confronting said opening.

4. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of: a containerhaving a top wall with side and end walls depending therefrom and anopening in the bottom thereof, said top wall having a slot-like openingtherein; a supporting plate insertable into said container through saidopen bottom, on which a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; and springmeans disposed in the lower part of said container, said spring meanscomprising end portions to engage the ends of said supporting plate andlaterally and outwardly bowed side portions, said bowed portions andsaid side wall of said container having detachable means ofinterengagement to hold said spring means in operative position in saidcontainer, said spring means urging said supporting plate upward towardsaid top wall of said container so as to yieldably hold the top kerchiefof said stack in a position confronting said opening.

5. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of: a containerhaving a top wall with side and end walls depending therefrom, said topwall having a slot-like opening therein; a supporting plate in saidcontainer on which a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; and springmeans disposed in the lower part of said container, said spring meanscomprising end portions to engage the ends of said supporting plate andside portions, said portions and said side wall of said container havingdetachable means of interengagement to hold said spring means inoperative position in said container, said spring means urging saidsupporting plate upward toward said top wall of said container so as toyieldably hold the top kerchief of said stack in a position confrontingsaid opening, there being spaces between the edges of said supportingplate and said side walls in which said side portions of said spring maymove when said supporting plate is in lowered position in saidcontainer.

6. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of: a containerhaving a top wall with side and end walls depending therefrom, said topwall having a slot-like opening therein; a supporting plate in saidcontainer on which a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; lugsprojecting inward from said side walls; and spring means disposed in thelower part of said container, said spring means comprising end portionsto engage the ends of said supporting plate, and side portions, therebeing detachable means of interengagement between said side portions andsaid lugs to hold said spring operatively in said container, wherebysaid spring will urge said supporting plate upwardly toward said topwall of said container.

7. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combination of: a containerhaving a top Wall with side and end walls depending therefrom and anopen bottom, said top wall having a slot-like opening therein; asupporting plate insertable into said container through said openbottom, on which a stack of said kerchiefs is supported; lugs projectinginward from said side Walls; and spring means disposed in the lower partof said container, said spring means comprising a strip bent to the formof a closed loop having end portions to engage the ends of saidsupporting plate, and side portions, there being detachable means ofinterengagement between said side portions andsaid lugs to hold saidspring operatively in said container, whereby said spring will urge saidsupporting plate upwardly toward said top wall of said container.

8. In a holder for tissue kerchiefs, the combinationof: a containerhaving a top wall with closed loop having end portions to engage the 7ends of said supporting plate, and side portions, there being spiralcoils formed in said side portions to detachably engage said lugs tohold said spring operatively in said container, whereby said spring willurge said supporting plate upwardly toward said top wall of saidcontainer.

FRANK J. NA'IWICK.

ROY A. SAN'BORN.

